LONG BEACH COLLEGE PREPARATORY ACADEMY
The Long Beach College Preparatory Academy (LBCPA) provides highly motivated students with the opportunity to attend competitive four year colleges. Over a two year period, LBCPA helps students to create a personal blueprint empowering them to secure their passport to a college degree.
OUR RESULTS: FINANCIAL AID, SCHOLARSHIPS, & COLLEGE ADMISSIONS
Class of 2019
- Estimated Total Amount of Merit Scholarships Awarded for over 4 years: $5,534,832
- Total Amount of Merit Scholarship for Freshman year: $1,383,708.00
- Number of students who received Merit Scholarships: 20
- Acceptances in 13 States across the Country
Class of 2018
- Total Amount of Merit Scholarships Awarded for over 4 years: $3,308,052
- Total Amount of Merit Scholarship for Freshman year: $827,013
- Number of students who received Merit Scholarships: 18
- Acceptances in 17 States across the Country
Class of 2017
Total Amount of Merit Scholarships Awarded for over 4 years: $2,000,000
Total Amount of Merit Scholarship for Freshman year: $600,000
Number of students who received Merit Scholarships: 22
Acceptances in 20 States across the Country
Class of 2014
- Total Amount of Merit Scholarships Awarded: $1,029,378
- Total Amount of Merit Scholarship for freshman year: $257,345
- Number of students who received Merit Scholarship: 15
- Acceptances in 17 States across the Country
“IT ENABLED ME TO SET HIGHER EXPECTATIONS FOR MYSELF AND HELPED ME FIND MY PASSION AND COLLEGE CAREER PATH.”
WHAT MAKES THE LONG BEACH COLLEGE PREPARATORY ACADEMY UNIQUE
Throughout a very competitive application and selection process, LBCPA scholars are chosen from LBUSD’s ten high schools. Only a total of 50 students are selected. These 50 students meet together at least monthly over two years to explore careers, research colleges, collaborate together, socialize, apply for financial aid, and apply to colleges. This is a very selective group of students.
The curriculum includes the following components:
- Career and major exploration
- Guidance on internships and activities
- Resume development and interviewing skills
- College research
- Individualized college list development
- SAT preparation
- College application essay writing
- College application and scholarship research support
- Financial aid application and evaluation assistance
- College visit
“MANY STUDENTS WOULD ASK WHY I WAS SO PREPARED (FOR COLLEGE APPLICATIONS) AND I WOULD SAY, ‘LBCPA, THAT’S WHY!”
WHY CHOOSE LONG BEACH COLLEGE PREPARATORY ACADEMY
The Long Beach College Prep Academy was co-founded, designed and launched for LBUSD by Damon Dunn and Jan Kerchner. The comprehensive college planning curriculum was designed specifically to provide highly motived students with the opportunity to attend competitive four year colleges.
To be eligible, students must be in the second semester of the sophomore year of high school, must be of good character and highly motivated and also demonstrate strong performance in AP and/or Honors classes. Students representing all 10 of LBUSD’s high schools, are selected for the Academy through a very competitive application process requiring essays as well as teacher and counselor recommendations.
“UNLIKE ANY OTHER COLLEGE PREP PROGRAMS BECAUSE IT ENCOMPASSED SO MANY DIFFERENT PARTS WITH THE COLLEGE PREP PROCESS.”
MISSION AND HISTORY OF THE LONG BEACH COLLEGE PREPARATORY ACADEMY
In 2012, upon the request of the Long Beach Unified School District’s (LBUSD) Superintendent Chris Steinhauser, The Long Beach College Preparatory Academy (LBCPA) was co-founded by Damon Dunn and Jan Kerchner. The comprehensive college planning curriculum was designed specifically to provide highly motivated students with the opportunity to attend competitive four year colleges. LBCPA offers a blueprint empowering students to secure their passport to a college degree.
LBCPA was piloted with 21 students from the Class of 2014 during the second semester of their sophomore year. This first class to graduate from the Academy achieved a 100% four-year college admission rate and substantial merit scholarships. Pleased with the results of the pilot program, LBUSD made the strategic decision to institutionalize the Long Beach College Prep Academy and expand to 30 students at each grade level.
The next class to graduate from the Academy was the class of 2017 again with a 100% four-year college admission rate. After attending the Graduation Celebration in May 2017 for the second Academy class, Superintendent Steinhauser decided to expand the Long Beach College Prep Academy to 50 students per class. As it stands today, a new cohort of 50 scholars from the Long Beach Unified School District are selected each year to join the Long Beach College Preparatory Academy.
COLLEGE ACCEPTANCES FROM LBCPA STUDENTS
Allegheny College
Arizona State University
Azusa Pacific University
Bentley University
Biola University
Boston University
Bowdoin College
Brown University
Bucknell University
Butler University
California College of the Arts
California Lutheran University
California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo
California State Polytechnic University, Pomona
California State University, Chico
California State University, Dominguez Hills
California State University, East Bay
California State University, Fresno
California State University, Fullerton
California State University, Humboldt
California State University, Long Beach
California State University, Los Angeles
California State University, Monterey Bay
California State University, Northridge
California State University, Sacramento
California State University, San Marcos
Carnegie Mellon University
Case Western Reserve University
Chapman University
Claremont McKenna College
Clark University
Colorado College
Colorado School of the Mines
Columbia University
Concordia University, Irvine
Cornell University
Cornish College of the Arts
Culinary Institute of America
Davidson College
DePaul University
Dominican University
Drexel University
Duke University
Elon University
Emory University
Fordham University
Fort Lewis College
George Mason University
George Washington University
Georgetown University
Goucher College
Grinnell College
Gustavus Adolphus College
Hamilton College
Hampton University
Harvard University
Harvey Mudd College
Hawaii Pacific University
Hofstra University
Howard University
Ithaca College
Johnson & Wales University
Lake Forest College
Le Moyne College
Lewis & Clark College
Long Island University
Louisiana State University
Loyola Marymount University
Loyola University, New Orleans
Marist College
Maryland Institute College of Art
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
McDaniel College
Mills College
Naval Academy Preparatory School
New York University
Northeastern University
Northern Arizona University
Northwestern University
Occidental College
Oregon State University
Pace University
Pepperdine University
Pomona College
Pratt Institute
Purdue University
Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute
Rice University
Rochester Institute of Technology
Rollins College
Saint John's University
Saint Mary's College of California
San Diego State University
San Francisco State University
San Jose State University
Santa Clara University
Scripps College
Sonoma State University
Spelman College
St. John's University
Stanford University
Stevens Institute of Technology
State University of New York - College of Technology at Canton
Swarthmore College
Syracuse University
Temple University
The New School: Parsons School of Design
Tulane University
University of Arizona
University of California, Berkeley
University of California, Davis
University of California, Irvine
University of California, Los Angeles
University of California, Merced
University of California, Riverside
University of California, San Diego
University of California, Santa Barbara
University of California, Santa Cruz
University of Chicago
University of Colorado-Boulder
University of Denver
University of Illinois-Urbana-Champaign
University of La Verne
University of Massachusetts-Amherst
University of Minnesota
University of New Mexico
University of Notre Dame
University of Pennsylvania
University of Pittsburgh
University of Puget Sound
University of Redlands
University of Rochester
University of San Diego
University of San Francisco
University of Southern California
University of Tampa
University of the Pacific
University of Virginia
University of Washington-Seattle
Valley Forge Military Academy & College
Virginia Commonwealth University
Washington State University
Wellesley College
Wesleyan University
Whittier College
Willamette University
Williams College
Worcester Polytechnic Institute
Xavier University of Louisiana
Yale University
APPLICATION PROCESS
Eligible students will be invited to apply during the second semester of their sophomore year. To be eligible, students must be in the second semester of the sophomore year of high school, must be of good character and highly motivated and also demonstrate strong performance in AP and/or Honors classes.
Students representing all 10 of LBUSD’s high schools, are selected for LBCPA through a very competitive application process requiring essays as well as teacher and counselor recommendations. To be selected as an LBCPA Scholar is an honor!
Criteria For Being Selected
Students must be of good character, highly motivated and demonstrate strong performance in AP and /or Honors Classes.
IN OUR STUDENTS' WORDS...
“I would have had no idea how to apply to college without LBCPA.”
“They ((LBCPA) gave me guidance on which schools to lean towards, and helped me to understand my opportunities for college.”
“I would recommend it (LBCPA) because it provides guidance and in-depth information for a better understanding of colleges, and benefits for the students and their futures.”
“It is such a great resource that has helped very much getting into college and working hard through the application process”
“I appreciated it all.”
“Keep doing what you are doing!”
“I LEARNED HOW TO APPLY TO COLLEGE, WHAT THEY ARE LOOKING FOR, WHAT I SHOULD BE LOOKING FOR. I PRETTY MUCH BENEFITTED IN EVERY POSSIBLE WAY.”
“It really helped with the stress of the college process.”
“Counselors opened me up to options for college that I did not know existed and made me much more open minded.”
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